I was driving down the interstate about 70 mpg near Terrell, TX on Sunday and...WHAM! -followed by a whole lot of clanking noise. It felt like we hit a small car, but I was obviously paying attention and knew better. I looked in the rear-view and didn't see any driveshaft/axle/wheel/exhaust parts bouncing down the road behind me as I was pulling off so I was totally stumped.

Ok, so maybe I wasn't totally stumped, but I'll get into that at the end so you dont' have to waste your time if you're not interested... I'll cut straight to the problem and add the rest of the story at the end also.

2006 Dodge Ram 1500
Quad Cab SLT
5.7 Hemi ("D" VIN)

I opened the rear-diff last night and found the oil to be pretty glittery, and this is a picture of what I found laying in the bottom...



Then I looked up at the differential gears and saw this...



So I guess this pin/shaft holds the spider gears(?) in place. Sorry, I might be calling things by the wrong name here, if so please correct me... Apparently it slid out of the casing far enough on one side to get caught up on something and break in half. I'm thinking this shaft is that "small car" I hit on the interstate...

Here's the twist... The Dodge dealer tells me this truck is supposed to have the LSD, but even I can tell you there are no clutch packs, discs, etc. in this rear-end. Somebody please correct me if I'm missing something here... Both the dealerships I talked to used the VIN to to determine exactly what it was supposed to be.

So, my questions are these:

1. Can I replace this pin/shaft and be on my merry way (assuming the rest of the gears are in good shape)? I'm fine with fixing the open diff but not really sure if I have to get the whole gear set just to get the shaft that holds the gears in place

2. Since this isn't the factory differential, how can I make sure to get the right parts? I know it's a Dodge 9.25" rear-end, but that's all I can say for sure. I'm pretty sure it has the same gear ratio as original (355) since my speedo reads exactly the same speed as my gps unit. Maybe it's the original axle with different internal guts...

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You can keep on reading if you want to hear about the rest I promissed to tell.

Back to "I wasn't totally stumped..." I had been hearing a very occasional clunking noise frrom the rear-end for the last two years. It wasn't easy to reproduce, and it only happend when turning a corner about 12-15 mph. The Dodge dealer nearest my house was quick to jump to the conclusion that my rear leaf springs were worn out. I knew better than this, but since my warranty was technically 2 weeks past I didn't feel the need to question their absolutely, without-a-doubt, positive diagnosis. I guess they were doing me a favor (because my wife and I had been overseas with the military for the past 15 months and the truck had 6k remaining on the 6yr/36k warrany) but it was 36-1/2 months after the original sale date. Truthfully, the noise WAS actually softer after I took it to the dealer, but I knew the problem was still there and it was in my rear differential. It's just not worth dealing with the "service advisors" at this dealership, so I went on my business with a new set of leaf springs and hoped my problem wasn't serious. Personally, I think this dealership is taking money from Dodge Corporate for unnecessary warranty work. I personally like Dodge, just not this specific dealership.

And then back to the story about last weekend... With all that noise I was hearing, I was sure I'd find the driveshaft dragging along, but nope, I pulled over, got under the truck and found everything to be good and secure. I was 80 miles from home on Sunday so my only option was to get it towed. For whatever reason (maybe I felt the need to do more damage and hear the worst clanking racket in the world) I put it back in Drive and let off the brake. I could hardly believe it when the truck started moving on its own power and only made a moderate amount of clunking noise. I knew I would be pushing my luck, but I decided to baby it back. As long as I got within 30 miles from home my the roadside assistance option on my cell phone plan would take me the rest of the way on a flatbed. So I started out at 5 mph...I can tell something's definitely not right; then 10 mph...not sounding good; 20 mph...people are looking at me as I pull away from the fuel station; 40...pretty loud but I can't really "feel" the noise yet; 50 mph...put the windows up and it sounds like 30 mph again, although I'm starting to feel the vibration a bit; 60 mph...Are you crazy? I'm pushing my luck at 50!

So we made it 80 or so miles home. I didn't want to take I-20, 80, and I-635 with all the crazies flying down the highway at 80 mph so we putzed all the way around the outside of Dallas and Ft Worth between 30 and 50 mph, finally back home in Roanoke about 2 hours later. What a day!?!

Oh yeah...I had those questions about getting this thing repaired... Any suggestions?

 

Do a search on here or just Google "C-Clips" you can read from now until you need bifocals...

 

Hammer, am I missing something here? I'm no axle mechanic but I'm pretty sure this is an OPEN rear-diff, not a limited slip diff... And if it's not an LSD, then it's not the C-clips, right?

 

You would be correct, I didn't read your entire post. I am so used to seeing "my rear blew up" posts and it's the c-clips 99.79420% of the time that it's a reflex action to suggest a search of the c-clip issue.

Would be rare for your diff to go and it not be LSD/C-clip related, but like with any other vehicle, it can happen...

 

here are the pics for everyone else. Either way, it looks nasty.

 

odd...but i now know i have a open diff when all this time i was told i have a lsd my build sheet has a 3.92 gear ratio with a ld at the end of the sentence which i was told was lsd rear end , well when i had my rear end done yesterday the guy called me cause i wanted the clutch pack clips removed he was like you dont have any....hmmmm i said he said you have a open diff.....w/e so i got a one wheel peel with 4.56 now...but he told me theres alot of 3rd gen rams needing rearend rebuild going on as you all know the cp-clips fall out and carrier bearings the inside races develop flat spots and crack....hmmmm dodge should be fixin this....just my opinion....good luck bro look on all i mean all the ram type forum for gears or w/e you need i found mine bnib for 225 shipped.....with master install kit....

 

Yes, doesn't look good for me... Ok, so if this isn't the original rear end that came in my truck (or was it? I'm confused with what jusjay is saying about his open diff)... Anyway, how do I find a replacement pin/shaft to put in there?

By the way, this is sorta still drivable, but I have been going real slow and easy since I don't have another vehicle at the moment. This isn't going to sound right but... My rear-end would appreciate some fast input.

by the way, I fixed those pictures so they show up and resized them to fit nicely on this post... So what do I do to fix this thing?

 

fast input huh.....what im saying is im confuzzled about mine too as my build sheet says ld for limited slip diff but my gear guy said i have a open....kinda weird is all im saying

 

Im going to say its the stock diff. That how my trucks diff looks like. On the driver's side rear axle by the disc there is a label that says what you have on your diff. Mine says its a 3.92 with a trac lock or something. Im guessing its not open but dont really know if i hold the brake and burnout both wheels turn so im guessing it lsd. Or if i just smash the gas pedal. I have a 03 5.7 1500. I woudnt drive it without the pinion , google to find one along with the bolt that holds it in place. Replace the pinion and try it out. did you find a small bolt in your differencial if not it could be worse.


Hey justjay can you tell where you got that deal on your gears and bearing kit.

 

Jusjay, I got the build sheet for my VIN from a nice gentleman by the name of Randy. On there is this "DRBS Corporate 9.25 LD Rear Axle"...which he says is DEFINITELY NOT a limited slip diff. So it seems that I have an open diff from the factory and both Dodge dealers near me here in TX were wrong. This is a good thing as far as I'm concerned though, at least I can easily find the replacement parts that I'll be needing.